Automatic electric coupling mechanism.



M. WUBRPEL. AUTOMATIC ELEGTRiO COUPLING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED APR'.17, 1907.

3 SHEETSSHEE T 1.

WITNESSES mvsn'ron v Patented N0v.'21,1911. I

M. WUERPBL.

AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC COUPLING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED APRL17, 1907. 1,009,370, Patented Nov. 21, 1911.

3$HEETSSHEET 2.

, m w 2 g M. WUERPEL. AUTOMATIG ELECTRIC COUPLING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED APR.17,Q 1907.

1,009,370. Patented N0v.2 1,1911.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

WITNESSES mam STATES P TENT OFFICE. a

MORRIS WUERPEL, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A SSIGNOR TO WESTINGHOUSE AUTOMATIC AIR & STEAM COUPLER COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

' AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC COUPLING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 21, 1911.

I To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MORRIsYVUnRPEL, a

citizen of the United States, residing at St.

Louis, Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Electric Coupling Mechanisms, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention has reference to automatic coupling apparatus for electric circuits and may be applied in connection with auxiliary coupler heads mounted below and attached to the ordinary M. C. B. coupler or other preferredtype of coupler head, as for example in the case of the patent to Niederlander No. 827,988, or maybe applied in conjunction with coupler heads which are arranged independently of the car coupler or other device for securing the cars together, the gathering mechanism for the heads, however, being in its.main essential particulars substantially the same as that shown in said Niederlander patent and comprising the usual inclined ways and the spring devicefor bringing the heads-into proper register and forcing'the' lateral engaging faces together, all substantially as, has been heretofore known in the] art.

The object of the present invention has particular reference to the arrangement of certain electrical contactsdn a common. insulating base carried upon such coupler head, and to the provision of an improved form of contact connect-ion whereby a better connection will be obtained when the coupler heads are locked together, andwhereby theJparts will be less liable to derangement or damage in ordinary service, or as a resultof the coming together of the coupler .lieajds' through the action of the This-improvement may be used as indicated in'the accompanying drawings, in conjunctiornwith a gathering device and heads having ainhose orfother fluid pressure connect-ionsjor it may be used if preferred, in

cohji'inetion with heads in which such fluid ressure connections are not employed, but in order to make the entire application of the improvement clear the same has been shown in conjunction with coupler heads employing such fluid pressure connection.

Referring to. the accompanying drawing. t Wlll be seen that F igure 1 indicate in elevation a view of the engaging face of a coupler embodying my improvement: Fig. 1 is a section on the line AA of Fig. 1; Fig. 2 is a rear view in elevation, that is a view from outside looking inward toward thecenter of the car, while Fig. 3 is an end view looking inward toward the center of the car; Fig. 4 is a sectional view indicating the arrangement of the box in which the terminal wires are incased and the main or bus bar connection of the group of electrical contacts, while Fig. 5 is a sectional view indicating the arrangement of the female members of the group of electrical contact connections, and Fig. 6 is a sectional view indicating the arrangement of the male members adapted to register with the connections shown in Fig. 5. Fig, 7 is a. sectional View taken on the line B--B of Fig. 1.

- Referring now more particularly to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 it will be seen that I have therein indicated a coupler head marked 7 carrying a couple of fluid pressureopenings 8 which may be of usual construction and provided with'the ordinary form of gathering means comprising primarily the inclined faces 9 and the spring 10 constructed to work in substantially similar manner to those heretoforc known in the art, and below the con- 'pler head 7 there is extended a projecting tongues and the sockets which receive the same being made of elongated shape sub-' stantially as indicated on Fig. 1, the two parts being arranged in two vertical. columns in position so that it will not matter which end of the car comes opposite the adjoining car they will always register and couple correctly.

It will be seen on examining 1 and 3 that the coupler heads are provided with a shoulder indicated at 16, which holds the cesses 1e, forming a sliding and clean connection, while the bus bar contact 13 by virtue of its spring shape indicated in Fig. at will be pressed back into the recess marked 17, and form a good electrical contact.

It will be further observed that the slotted piece of insulating material indicated gen erally by the reference character 12 is com p'osed of two parts 18 and 19 for convenience of manufacture, and these two parts are anchored in the socket or base part- :20

. which at its rear has an opening covered by a plate 21, which latter can be readily re moved to secure access to the interior of the terminal box 22 in which are the terminals of the various cables which connect with the bus bar connection 13 and the various projections 15 and socket pieces 14.

The operation of my improvement is as follows: The two cars coming together the gathering mechanism operates in the usual manner to direct the two coupler heads 7 into their proper relative position, the shoulder projections 16 on each .of the heads serving to force the two heads a little distance apart to protect the projections 15 against damage, until the two heads are in proper position for contact, when these shoulders 16 will pass each other and the spring 10 will drive the two heads together, into the coupled position, as shown in Fig. 7 the same motion being accompanied with a slight rubbing motion of the contact faces 15 within their sockets 1.4, both because of the lateral motion due to the spring 10 and the. slight play back and forth of the two coupler heads after the shoulders 16 pass each other. The socket parts 14 are preferably arranged so as to have theside faces 23 somewhat elastic, in order to secure better contact, provision for such elastic operation being arranged by the relief afforded by the clearance space 24 indicated in Fig. 5.

It will. be seen by examination of Fig. 5 that the use of the two parts 18 and 19 in the construction of the insulating plate facilitates the insertion of the contact terminals and the holding of the same in place by means of the flanges 25 shown in said Fig. 5, corresponding constructions to which are provided on the other contact members. The cables being all brought into the terminal ieces with'the insulation reaching up to the insulating blocks, it is obvious that by the arrangement shown there is nothing ex posed which is'in open connection with the electric circuit except the interior faces of the female parts and the projecting tongues 15 and the bus bar connection 13, all of the rest being thoroughly insulated and pro tected against interference of any'kind.

Having thus described my invention and illustrated its use, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is the following 1. An automatic electric coupler comprising in combination a coupler head, a socket therein containing an insulating base plate, a plurality of contact connections arranged in said base plate in pairs arranged in a vertical plane, one male and one female in each pair, and the pairs arranged with both members on substantially the same horizontal plane.

2. An automatic electric coupler device comprising in combination a base plate, a head carrying said base plate, automatic means for coupling said head, and contact connections provided in said-base plate in a vertical row of pairs, said pairs being arranged on horizontal planes to register with corresponding pairs of a companion coupling member, substantially as described.

3. An automatic electric coupling device comprising in combination a coupler head, automatic means for coupling said head, a base plate carrying a plurality of contact connections, said contact connections comprising a vertical row of male contacts, and an adjacent vertical row of female contacts, each pair of contacts being on the same horizontal plane, substantially as described.

4:. An automatic electric coupling device comprising in combination a coupler head, a base plate, said base plate containing .a plurality of electrical contact connections adapted to make lateral engagement with corresponding electrical contact connections of a cooperating coupling member, said contact connections being arranged in lines vertically and in corresponding horizontal planes, substantially as described.

5. An automatic electric coupler comprising in combination a coupler head, a socket therein containing a longitudinally arranged insulating base plate, a pair of contact connections in said base plate, and the contacts arranged with both members on sub- ,stantially the same horizontal plane.

6. An automatic electric coupler comprising in combination a coupler head, a socket therein containing a longitudinally arranged insulating base plate, knife blade connections in said base plate, one male and ,one female, and the contacts arranged with both members on substantially the same horizom.

tal plane.

7 In an automatic electric coupler, the combination. with counterpart heads adapted to couple upon relative longitudinal movement thereof, of an insulating base plate In testimony whereof I have hereunto carried by each head and male and female -signed my name in the presence of the two connections carried by said base plate, said subscribed witnesses. connections being arranged in'verti'cal rows MORRIS VVUERPEL. and in pairs, comprising a male and a female Witnesses:

connection located in a substantially hori- (1E. MACCARROLL,

zontal plane. Y -MIGHAEL J. SLATTERY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G." 

